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SOUTH FLORIDA (CBSMiami) – Tri-Rail passengers can expect far fewer delays…if they can hang on for 18 months.

That’s when slow-moving freight trains at rush hour and mechanical breakdowns — two of the biggest sources of delays for Tri-Rail passengers — should be history, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports.

On Friday, Tri-Rail’s board of directors approved an agreement that puts the service itself in charge of maintaining the tracks and the schedules for all trains effective June 2014.

By that time, most of Tri-Rail’s aging locomotives and passenger cars will have been replaced.

The rail service’s track record could be far better. In 2012, trains ran on time at least 90 percent of the time during only one month – January. The worst month was October, when only 67 percent of trains ran on time.

In December, 49 trains were late due to either dispatching, freight trains or breakdowns.